Recent Posts

About

If you're very sick and not very wealthy in America, your best move may be to just flee the country. Otherwise, expect to pay through the nose and possibly wind up deep in debt. That's the takeaway of newly released research from The Commonwealth Fund, a private foundation that seeks to improve poor people's access to quality health care.

Seeking to learn more about the experiences of sicker adults around the world, the group surveyed more than 18,000 adults who were in fair or poor health, had recently been hospitalized, and had had major surgery or a serious illness in the past year. The group looked at adults in 11 high-income countries where patients with complex care needs typically account for a disproportionate share of national health spending.

The findings: U.S. patients with complex care needs were much more likely than those in 10 other high-income countries to forgo needed treatment because of costs, according to the survey. Americans are also more likely to struggle with medical debt.

In fact, 27% of the Americans surveyed were unable to pay or encountered serious problems paying medical bills in the past year, compared with between 1% and 14% of adults elsewhere. In the U.S., 42% reported not visiting a doctor, filling a prescription, or getting recommended care because of cost issues -- at least twice the rate of every other country but Australia, New Zealand, and Germany.

"Given how much the U.S. spends on health care, one would expect better performance," says Michelle McEvoy Doty, Ph.D, vice president of Survey Research and Evaluation with The Commonwealth Fund.

Indeed, Americans spend more on healthcare than any other country: $7,960 per person in 2009, the latest figure available. Norway came in a distant second at $5,352, according to data cited by The Commonwealth Fund.

A big problem is the number of uninsured -- 50 million. Those folks typically get their health care in emergency rooms, which drives up costs for themselves, as well as for the hospitals and doctors that ultimately care for them.

"There is an unevenness in health care in the U.S., compared to other countries, says Elise Gould, director of health policy research with the Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank. "We have the best care in the world, but it really depends on who you are."

Getting out of debt

Economics 101

Add a Comment

573 Comments

Filter by:

Morris Cantonitis

This is the 6th edition of the Wall Alley PIGG being prepared for the next 20 years.It’s Jagoff Wall Alley PIGG Time and Satan **** 4 U.Chase that cost basis of the world and Satan chases U sodomizing, nose dusting, incestual PIGGS.300,000,000 just outside your PIGG Dens all ready to slice your ******** worthless throats.When those OCCUPIERS get in, along with the NYPD they are going to smash your skulls like watermelons. They will take that smirk off your face. Once inside, Satan will throw his CUM all over the NYSE PIGG bitches and bastards as they ride his trident.Satan conjures U PIGGS.NYC GETS NUKED.Where are those shrooms Homeland Insecurity?Yes. Yes. Wall Alley PIGGS. Ride that anal trident. Does it not feel SOOOOOOOO Good.Satan has brought out a second trident for the PIGGS and their children.TOOOOOOOO many ride the anal trident and Satan cannot polish his trident soooon enough.America said FORGET THE MONEY Wall Alley PIGGS. Just keep RIDING. Back and forth, up and down, until U have that JOYOUS pleasure and SWALLOW down the spew of Satan and ask 4 MORE.U are an infection that MUST be cleansed. U are a broken PIGG.NUKE these PIGGS Russia & China. The PIGGS react to Good Mans trades and direct the charts accordingly as they STEAL the Worlds worth. Parasitic Leaches of the World.NYC GETS NUKED

I will never own another credit card in my life, I will not keep my money in the bank, these peole can't be trusted they use our money to make money when you want to borrow money they charge you anywhere from 6% to 30%. and when you keep money in the bank they give you .01 to .03% gains then charge you another tax on the money your money supposedly made for you. its a lose lose situation. then they come up with a way to charge you even more by watching you with their credit reports. for anyone that doesn,t know everytime someone checks your credit report you lose points from your credit report and if you close a credit card you might even lose 100 points from your credit score. So what happens if i close six credit cards all at once. I,l probably get a call from my state farm telling me that my insurance premium just went up a thousand bucks. Gota Love it.

Like i said i have been workin since i was 17 payin ginto the medicare system ever since never had to go to the doc then came a time where i got laid off. For all you people that don't know what getting laid of means it means that you loose your medical benefits the same fricken week. Well i had to do some work on my car and since i was laid off i decided to do it myself., i ended up getting some rust in my eye in the process it was later in the evening so my doctor was closed and i didnt have any choice but to go to the ER Well let me tell you these peole are ridiculous for one they couldnt find anything in my eye but becasue they put some eyedrops in my eye and looked at my eye thru some microscope. For a 45 minute wait in the lobby and 10 mins with the doc and the eye drops i was charged 672 dollars. and have the bill to prove it. So for anyone talkin **** thru their ass that the system isn't Majorly Fd up Now for regular working people like me thats my friken house payment. So unless you work for Fannie mae or Freddie Mac making 900,000 dollars a year and get a 4 million dollar bonus each year. Kiss my ass.

A sure sign that a great nation is getting ready to fall is how their health care system works or in America's case doesn't work. Take a look at this country. 55% of all bankruptcy happen in this country because people can't pay their medical bills, not because they don't work, not because they are lazy, but because their insurance is a joke, doesn't pay enough of the medical expense, or is too expensive for the person to get. Pharmacutical companies have been knowed to charge up to $400.00 for a 30 day supply of medicine. Lord help that person if they don't have insurance. Need I say more.

No, you needn't say more. Obamacare isn't the answer. Neither is single pay. The vast majority of people are insured. Their ability to access insurance should not impact the majority who already have it. This is what Obamacare will bring. Insured people have the right to keep our insurance. Due to Obamacare over 30% of corporations will take the fine and millions will enter the insurance exchange, which means more taxpayer funded premium subsidies that we can't afford. 19 million uninsured Americans will get their insurance through being put in Medicaid. Not only does Medicaid suck, but it puts more financial burden on already cash-strapped States.

There has to be a better way and I hope the Supreme Court tosses this out.